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Satire in your publications:
Who is the joke really on?

Posted by on Aug 29, 2017 in Blog, Lessons, Scholastic Journalism, Teaching | 0 comments

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by Jeff Kocur

Title

Satire in your publications: Who is the joke really on?

Description

Students think of themselves as smart and funny, but does that mean they can handle satire? Satire opens students up to many legal risks including libel and invasion of privacy. Use this activity to explore some of the pitfalls of using satire in your publications.

Objectives

  • Students will explore the legal and ethical risks of using satire.
  • Students will identify potential ethical issues in using satire.
  • Students will become familiar with mistakes other school publications have made in publishing satire.

Common Core State Standards

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.11-12.2 Determine two or more central ideas of a text and analyze their development over the course of the text, including how they interact and build on one another to provide a complex analysis; provide an objective summary of the text.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.11-12.1 Initiate and participate effectively in a range of collaborative discussions (one-on-one, in groups, and teacher-led) with diverse partners on grades 11-12 topics, texts, and issues, building on others’ ideas and expressing their own clearly and persuasively.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.11-12.1.B Work with peers to promote civil, democratic discussions and decision-making, set clear goals and deadlines, and establish individual roles as needed.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.11-12.4 Present information, findings, and supporting evidence, conveying a clear and distinct perspective, such that listeners can follow the line of reasoning, alternative or opposing perspectives are addressed, and the organization, development, substance, and style are appropriate to purpose, audience, and a range of formal and informal tasks.

Length

50 minutes

Materials / resources

Case Studies Worksheet

From the Experts Worksheet

SPLC Article on UW-superior

Texas 1984

Louisiana  

UVA

‘Advisory board’ formed after Ga. student paper runs ‘Modest Proposal’-style satire

Student satire publication lost funding, put on probation after article on sexual harassment

SPLC search results for “high school satire”

From experts:

Digiday highlights why many newspapers don’t do it.

NSPA and Hiestand explanation

Lesson step-by-step

Step 1 — Introduction (5 minutes)

Share a hypothetical satirical headline on your most high profile sport’s losing record.

Ask the students to identify the potential problems that might come with publishing a story like this.

Step 2 — Group assignment and work (40 minutes)

Separate the students into six groups and assign each of them a reading from the list above.

Students will read and complete the attached worksheet for the appropriate reading and report out to the class.

You could also turn this into a slideshow shared on Google docs with your students to fill out and present.

Step 3 — Exit ticket (5 minutes)

Students should answer the following:

What are the legal risks of running a satirical piece in student media?

Extension

Students could take this lesson a step further and develop a position of the use of satire. If they decided to use satire, they could also create an ethical statement outlining the ethical position of the students plus how they could handle satire ethical. See model for ethical guidelines, process.

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Journalists as professional skeptics

Posted by on Aug 29, 2017 in Blog, Lessons, Scholastic Journalism, Teaching | 0 comments

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by Kristin Taylor

Title:

Journalists as Professional Skeptics

Description
The first lesson explores ethical decision-making about what to publish and the importance of verification in that process. It is a case study that puts students in the role of an editor as they walk through a hypothetical story pitch and consequences of publishing an unverified story. The activity ends with a class reflection about best practices for verification and accountability. This lesson works best after teachers have already discussed how their schools are affected by state and federal laws (see SPLC First Amendment rights diagram) so students are familiar with their First Amendment rights as student journalists.
The second lesson builds on the activity from the day before by discussing the purpose of skepticism during the reporting process by looking at a real-life situation where a professional journalist was duped. It also examines the balance between healthy skepticism and unhealthy cynicism.

Objectives

  • Students will be able to explain the role of the editor as coach and explore how an editor can coach reporters during the reporting process.
  • Students will be able to identify red flags during the reporting process that suggest questionable sourcing and a need to verify information.
  • Students will be able to describe the importance of verifying information before publishing a story through participating in a hypothetical role play surrounding an unverified news story.
  • Students will be able to describe why it is important for journalists to be skeptical by reading and discussing a Rolling Stone article about a rape victim; the article turned out to be inaccurate.
  • Students will be able to employ strategies for fact-checking and determining when a source has a fact wrong or lied.
  • Students will reflect on how this may impact their own journalistic practice.

Common Core State Standards

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.9-10.10 By the end of grade 9, read and comprehend literary nonfiction in the grades 9-10 text complexity band proficiently, with scaffolding as needed at the high end of the range. By the end of grade 10, read and comprehend literary nonfiction at the high end of the grades 9-10 text complexity band independently and proficiently.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.11-12.3 Analyze a complex set of ideas or sequence of events and explain how specific individuals, ideas, or events interact and develop over the course of the text.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.9-10.1.C Propel conversations by posing and responding to questions that relate the current discussion to broader themes or larger ideas; actively incorporate others into the discussion; and clarify, verify, or challenge ideas and conclusions.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.9-10.2 Integrate multiple sources of information presented in diverse media or formats (e.g., visually, quantitatively, orally) evaluating the credibility and accuracy of each source.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.9-10.4 Present information, findings, and supporting evidence clearly, concisely, and logically such that listeners can follow the line of reasoning and the organization, development, substance, and style are appropriate to purpose, audience, and task.

Length

60 minutes

Materials / Resources

Whiteboard and markers

Teacher laptop and digital projector

Slideshow: “If You Were the Editor” (See the bottom of this lesson)

Lesson step-by-step

Step 1 — Warm Up (5 minutes)

As students enter the classroom, the first slide from the PowerPoint “If you were the editor” projected on the board. Read the prompt and have them journal for five minutes:

SLIDE 1: “Sometimes students want to report on some really tough subjects. How should an editor respond to a story likely to cause community outrage or unrest? Why or why not? Journal for five minutes and then we will share our thoughts.”

Step 2: — Class Discussion (5 minutes)

Allow students to share their initial thoughts and then advance to the next slide. Ask a student to read the question and respond: “Why might editors be tempted to avoid certain stories?” Discuss briefly as a class. (Possible answers: fear of “getting in trouble,” complaints from parents, too controversial. Teacher may want to introduce two types of censorship: external, where someone outside of the staff censors, and self-censorship where the reporters themselves decide not to pursue a story out of fear of the consequences. This is not the same as using good news judgment to determine whether or not a story is worth covering.)

Step 3 — Small Group Activity (15 minutes)

Advance to the next slide, which lays out the case study. Have a student read it out loud and then break the class into groups of 4-5. Students have 10 minutes to discuss this scenario, using the discussion questions below.

SLIDE 2: The situation: You are an editor. One of your student reporters wants to do an article on a student who has been expelled from school. That expelled student is alleging misconduct on the part of one of the school administrators and claims she was expelled just to cover up what the administrator did. However, the administration says that, due to confidentiality agreements, they cannot comment on the situation at all.

Discuss these questions with your group, using your staff manual for guidance.

  • Do you have any initial concerns about this story? Do you see any red flags? What questions would you initially ask the reporter about the story? (Possible discussion/responses: Is a student being expelled newsworthy when it’s primarily a private event? How can they verify this expulsion given that administrators cannot legally comment on confidential situations like this one? How can they verify the student’s allegation of misconduct? Are there public records or multiple reliable sources willing to go on the record? If not, students should be concerned about libel law.)
  • Who are the stakeholders in this story? How will a story like this affect them? The school as a whole? Why is that important to consider? (Possible answers: the expelled student and his/her family, the school’s reputation)
  • Would you feel tempted to not pursue this story? What information/sources would the reporter need and what steps would she need to take in order for you to feel comfortable with this story being written?

Step 4 — Class Discussion/Role Play (15 minutes)

After 10 minutes or once all groups have completed their initial discussion, advance to the next slide. Remind them that they are playing the role of the adviser. You can complete this part of the lesson through discussion or role play, with the student taking on the role of the editor and the adviser pretending to be the student reporter who is determined to write the story.

SLIDE 3: Questions to consider: How would you coach the reporter during

the process if …

  • The reporter is persistent and tenacious but still can’t get any comment from any administrator about the expulsion? (These school leaders are unable to comment on personal information like this by lie, so they don’t really have a choice about commenting. You may want to tease out why this is so problematic — we will definitely only be getting one side of the story.)
  • The reporter cannot verify that any misconduct took place, though the expelled student maintains it did? (Not being able to verify should stop good reporters and editors in their tracks. This scenario should be setting off lots of warning bells, but don’t give this away yet; the teacher will reveal consequences in the next slide.)
  • Despite these problems, the reporter wants to publish the story? She promises she will frame any claims the expelled student makes with “allegedly” and make it clear she reached out for comment and administrators declines, citing confidentiality agreements. (While it’s good that the student would include a disclosure statement, students may not know that simply adding the word “allegedly” does not protect them from liability if they publish harmful, false information. This scenario should be setting off lots of warning bells, but don’t give this away yet; the teacher will reveal consequences in the next slide.)

Before advancing to the next slide, tell students that, ultimately, the editorial board DID decide to go ahead and publish. Ask them how they feel and if they have any predictions about the outcome.

Step 5 — Assessment (20 minutes)

Advance to the next slide and have a student read what happens next:

Slide 4: Aftermath: The reporter publishes her story, and the administration is very upset. The administrator accused of misconduct contacts the adviser and you as the editor and says it was irresponsible for you to let it be published, as it is one-sided and libelous. She says she is considering shutting down the paper entirely given this situation.

Another source comes forward and tells you that she heard the expelled student made the entire story about the misconduct up. Upon further questioning, the expelled student admits it was a lie.

  1. What processes along the way could have prevented this from happening? (Potential responses: Looking for any kind of firsthand verification of the misconduct beyond the initial source; doing follow-up interviews with the source and asking for some kind of evidence of these accusations; stopping the story when verification became impossible.)
  2. Who should respond to these developments, and how should that person or persons respond? How do you rebuild public trust? (Potential Responses: If students have an error correction policy established, they should look at now to see what steps they need to follow. Since this is such an extreme case and could cause a libel lawsuit, students should also consider more public responses, such as writing a letter to the community with a transparent accounting of what happened. Reading this blog about how one staff dealt with a recent editorial mistake might also be helpful.)

Either in small groups or as a whole class, discuss how students feel about this situation and brainstorm responses to the two questions.

Advance to the final slide (SLIDE 5) and ask students to write an individual email to you describing what they learned from the activity and how they better understand the importance of verification before publishing a story.

Differentiation

Students with writing challenges could talk to the teacher in person rather than send an email describing what they learned.

Additional Resources:

Ask these 10 questions to make good ethical decisions

SPLC First Amendment rights diagram

They need the freedom to make mistakes, too,” Lindsay Coppens, JEA Scholastic Press Rights Committee

Day 2

Length

60 minutes

Materials:

Whiteboard and markers

Teacher laptop and digital projector

Student laptops

Paper slips with story scenario

Columbia School of Journalism report on Rolling Stone’s ‘A Rape on Campus’

How a teacher prepared her students to take on the adults and win.”

Lesson step-by-step

Step 1 — Warm up (5 minutes)

Projected on the board:

skeptic |ˈskeptik| noun: a person inclined to question or doubt all accepted opinions.

Given the “You be the editor” activity we did last class, why do you think some say a journalist’s primary job is to be a professional skeptic?

Students share thoughts on this warm-up question. Potential follow-up questions:

  • How would yesterday’s activity have gone differently if the student journalist and editors had been more skeptical? (Possible answers: Students would have seen red flags such as lack of verification and stopped the story if it couldn’t be verified; students wouldn’t have been as likely to believe the accusing student.)
  • Why is it dangerous to trust sources without verifying, even if you think there are trustworthy? (Possible answers: Sources lie sometimes because they are embarrassed or worried about getting in trouble, but even if they aren’t purposefully lying, they may be incorrect. They may not know the real story even if they think they do, or they may misremember something.)
  • What would you do if you suspected a source was lying to you? (Possible answers: Attempt to verify the source’s story through other credible sources; discuss the situation with the editors and adviser; depending on the situation, the reporter might confront the source. If verification isn’t possible, do not use the information.)
  • Is it possible to become too skeptical? What might the consequence of that be? (Possible answers: reporters may become cynical and think everyone is a liar rather than remembering the purpose of their work; reporters may continue to doubt even after reliable verification.)

Say, “Today we are going to be looking at a couple of cases where journalists either were or were not skeptical and the consequence of their choices.”

Step 2 — Small group activity (20 minutes)

Break students into groups of three or four and hand out a slip of paper with the following on it:

You are a reporter for a professional publication and have heard about how a nearby university is one of 86 schools under federal investigation due to being suspected of denying students their equal right to education by inadequately handling sexual-violence complaints. After doing some initial research, you find a student who says she was gang-raped by a group of male students at a fraternity party; she’s willing to be the subject of your story, but only if you change her name and don’t reveal her identity. She claims the university is trying to sweep the allegations under the rug, which fits the picture painted by what you have learned about the federal investigation. The school and the fraternity deny this student’s claims.

  1. Before you begin, do you have any personal biases you need to be aware of?
  2. How will you check out this source’s story? What evidence will you need to feel confident it’s accurate and honest?
  3. If you do find enough evidence, will you grant the source’s request to change her name to hide her identity? Look at your staff manual guidelines for using unnamed sources and be ready to justify why you would or would not be willing to proceed.
  4. Ethically, who else do you need to talk to before writing this story?
  5. What, if anything, would make you decide to not use this source?

Step 3 — Class discussion (35 minutes)

After 20 minutes of discussions, each group presents and compares its responses to the four questions. The teacher will then say, “This scenario you were working on was based on a real situation. In 2014, a reporter from Rolling Stone wrote a 9,000-word story about a rape victim she called “Jackie” at the University of Virginia, which was indeed being federally investigated. The problem? The story ended up being untrue. Other publications such as the Washington Post debunked “Jackie’s” story, and the reporter and Rolling Stone publisher later lost a multimillion dollar defamation suit brought by a UVA administrator. So let’s talk about what went wrong and the consequences of this situation.”

The class will go around the room reading one graf each until finished with this article: “Columbia School of Journalism report on Rolling Stone’s ‘A Rape on Campus’

Discussion questions:

  1. What went wrong? What mistakes did this reporter make? (Possible answers: Main issue: The reporter relied on a single source. Reporter never got in touch with “Jackie’s” friends to verify her story; Reporter didn’t speak directly to “Randall/Ryan” to verify his statement; Editors did not disclose that reporter could not verify the existence of “Drew” and had not spoken to him; the reporter did not give the fraternity enough information about the story she was working on for them to adequately respond.)
  2. Who was harmed by this false story? (Possible answers: the members of the fraternity, the school administrator accused of not taking the allegation seriously, the reputation of Greek organizations, UVA administration and general reputation, Rolling Stone’s reputation, the reporter herself, students who really have been raped)
  3. What other consequences might this story have beyond the defamation lawsuit the reporter lost? (Make sure students talk about the damage to real rape victims and how much more difficult it will be to report a similar story in the future.)  

Assessment: As a ticket-to-leave, students share a takeaway from this lesson; how will it impact their reporting in the future?

Extension: Now let’s look at a situation where reporters were skeptical despite a lot of pressure. Read this article and come prepared to discuss tomorrow: “How a teacher prepared her students to take on the adults and win.”

Additional Resources

Skeptical Knowing presentation

Using anonymous sources with care

Quick Hit: Using unnamed sources

Slideshow: If you were the editor

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Satire is hard

Posted by on Aug 29, 2017 in Blog, Lessons, Scholastic Journalism, Teaching | 0 comments

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by Jeff Kocur

Title

Satire is hard

Description

Students are funny. Students are smart. But are they smart enough to be funny with satire in a way that advances the journalistic goals of the publication? Can they do it without violating the SPJ ethical guidelines or their own publications’ ethical guidelines? Use this lesson to help students understand purpose of satire as a journalistic tool.

Objectives

  • Students will explore satire’s purpose in creating a message.
  • Students will explore satire in its application.
  • Students will discuss the mission statements of professional satirists versus their own.

Common Core State Standards

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.L.11-12.3 Apply knowledge of language to understand how language functions in different contexts, to make effective choices for meaning or style, and to comprehend more fully when reading or listening.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.11-12.3 Evaluate a speaker’s point of view, reasoning, and use of evidence and rhetoric, assessing the stance, premises, links among ideas, word choice, points of emphasis, and tone used.

Length

50 minutes

Materials / resources

Onion Mission Statement

Behind the scenes at The Onion

Your own mission statement

Understanding Satire resource sheet

Lesson step-by-step

Step 1 — Introductory video and discussion (15 minutes)

(The Understanding Satire resource sheet is to help provide teacher background)

Show the students the short video included which highlights the success of The Onion.

    1. Ask the students to work with pre assigned groups to answer two questions after viewing the video.
      1. What specific conventions of journalism is the Onion News Network critiquing?
      2. What is the journalistic message in the following stories?
        1. The story on the new congress threatening to move if they don’t get a new retractable roof.
        2. The story on daycare being outsourced.
        3. The story on U.S. breath being at all-time worst

Step 2 — Partner work (25 minutes)

Ask the students to read the mission statement for The Onion.

  1. What strikes you about the mission statement for The Onion?
  2.   Compare it to your own mission statement and have the students discuss the ways in which your mission statements vary. The students should come to a conclusion on why they vary so much.

    Step 3 — Exit ticket (10 minutes)

Before students leave, ask them to complete an exit ticket to answer the following:

In what ways is your newspaper’s mission statement incongruent with publishing work like The Onion’s? And what steps would you as an editor take to ensure your mission statement is not violated through the publication of a satirical piece.

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Don’t stand for being denied information

Posted by on Aug 29, 2017 in Blog, Lessons, Scholastic Journalism, Teaching | 0 comments

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by Jeff Kocur

Title:

Don’t stand for being denied information

Description

Students and the public have a right to view many records kept by schools, municipalities, states and federal government. Students should review how to submit a public records request and understand the legal aspects of doing so.The Student Press Law Center also hosts an open records letter generator to make it easy to do. Most often, the Freedom of Information Act request will come at a time when you might be crunched for time. Use this lesson to become more familiar with your rights under the Freedom of Information Act.

Objectives

  • Students will become familiar with the Freedom of Information Act.
  • Students will identify the types of data which would be available under the Freedom of Information Act
  • Students will consider 10 different possible scenarios for a Freedom of Information Act request in their school.

Common Core State Standards

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RH.11-12.9 Integrate information from diverse sources, both primary and secondary, into a coherent understanding of an idea or event, noting discrepancies among sources.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.11-12.1.B Work with peers to promote civil, democratic discussions and decision-making, set clear goals and deadlines, and establish individual roles as needed.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.11-12.2 Integrate multiple sources of information presented in diverse formats and media (e.g., visually, quantitatively, orally) in order to make informed decisions and solve problems, evaluating the credibility and accuracy of each source and noting any discrepancies among the data.

Day One:

Length

50 minutes

Materials / resources

Link to federal website with short video explanations https://www.foia.gov/about.html

Data Quality Campaign chart on how student data can get used:  

Teacher background resources:

http://media.spl.s3.amazonaws.com/243_knowyourrights_foio.pdf

https://www.foia.gov/faq.html

http://www.newsu.org/courses/freedom-information

http://www.splc.org/page/school-transparency

Lesson step-by-step

Step 1 — Introduction (5 minutes)

Begin this lesson with the quick presentation on the Freedom of Information Act.

Step 2 — Partner work (20 minutes)

Assign student partners and ask them to each to generate two different pieces of information a school, a city, and a state might not readily release (two each). Share out the results on the board and ask students to share any similarities they see.

Step 3 — Small group work (20 minutes)

Partner with another group to form groups of four, and give them six post-it notes. Each group is to come up with six different scenarios at the school, city, or state where they might want to, or need to, request information from the government.

Have each group place one of their ideas on a posterboard on the wall. If an idea has already been used, have the group find a new idea until they have contributed at least four ideas and shared

Step 4 — Assessment (5 minutes)

On an exit card, have the students identify the following information: (formative assessment #1)

Identify two specific scenarios (show the DQC graphic) in which student information would be protected.

Extension Activity:

Ask students to read or listen to the following article and discuss the intersection of personal privacy versus the public’s right to know.

Day 2:

Length

50 minutes

Materials / resources

Link to federal Website with explanations https://www.foia.gov/about.html

Freedom of Information Worksheet (attached)

New York Times Article on their use of FOIA

SPLC Open Records Request Generator

Lesson step-by-step

Step 1 — Link to previous lesson (5 minute)

Remind the students of the uses of the Freedom of Information Act they brainstormed yesterday, and invite them to suggest any other ideas they hadn’t mentioned yesterday.

Step 2 — Introduction (7 minutes)

Introduce today’s activity by showing them these requests are made by major media organizations with deep pockets, and have them read this article out loud in a jump-in format.

Step 3 — Assessment (38 minutes)

Ask students to complete the attached worksheet and scavenger hunt (formative assessment #2).

Extension (Homework):

Partner students and assign them one of the scenarios the students brainstormed on day one and have them create an Open Records Request through the SPLC letter generator.

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Self-censorship examination

Posted by on Aug 29, 2017 in Blog, Lessons, Scholastic Journalism, Teaching | 0 comments

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by Lori Keekley

Title

Self-censorship examination

Description

This lesson examines the self-censorship on the individual level. The lesson starts by providing a prompt in which students examine what they would like to cover, but feel they can’t for some reason. Discussion addresses why this self-censorship exists and examines whether this self-censorship should be abandoned.  

Objectives

  • Students will examine their own self-censorship content
  • Students will discuss why this self-censorship exists
  • Students will see whether this topic should be covered — is there a newsworthy peg that can be covered in a journalist responsible way.

Common Core State Standards

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.9-10.1.C Propel conversations by posing and responding to questions that relate the current discussion to broader themes or larger ideas; actively incorporate others into the discussion; and clarify, verify, or challenge ideas and conclusions.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.9-10.1.D Respond thoughtfully to diverse perspectives, summarize points of agreement and disagreement, and, when warranted, qualify or justify their own views and understanding and make new connections in light of the evidence and reasoning presented.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.11-12.8 Delineate and evaluate the reasoning in seminal U.S. texts, including the application of constitutional principles and use of legal reasoning (e.g., in U.S. Supreme Court majority opinions and dissents) and the premises, purposes, and arguments in works of public advocacy (e.g., The Federalist, presidential addresses).
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.11-12.1.B Work with peers to promote civil, democratic discussions and decision-making, set clear goals and deadlines, and establish individual roles as needed.

Length

100 minutes

Materials / resources

Handout:  “Ask These 10 Questions to Make Good Ethical Decisions,” Poynter Institute (teacher may want to print these for easier student reference during both lessons)

Slideshow: Self-Censorship Lesson Slides (see the bottom of the lesson)

Package planner (if you don’t have one, you could use the planner from Tim Harrower’s site.)

Lesson step-by-step

Day 1

Step 1 — Introduction and slide 2 of the slideshow (5 minutes)

Teacher should tell students the information they provide today will be anonymous unless they decide to put their names on their paper. Let them know the information will be used for a class discussion following this activity. This is outlined on slide 2 of the slideshow.

Step 2 — Prompt (5-10 minutes)

Ask students to answer the prompt on slide 3 using their own paper. They may make a list or use full sentences. It’s important they are honest and unafraid of putting the information down. Let students work through the prompt.

Students will be asked to identify the topic they would most like to cover. When this is finished, ask students to turn in their paper. If students could anonymously submit in an electronic form, it would make the second day preparation easier for the teacher.

Step 3 — Continuing the slideshow (15 minutes)

Students will work through a practice scenario starting at slide 5.

Step 4 — Evaluating their topic (10)

Students will evaluate (either alone or with a partner) if they could cover what they identified as the topic they would like to cover. This evaluation begins on slide 9. Students should work through the questions. The teacher may require students to write the answers down or just ask students to work through them.

Step 5 — Debrief (10 minutes)

Ask a few volunteers to share what they did. Students may opt to not to talk about the topic, but talk about the process instead. During the last two minutes of class, ask three people to share what they learned. (These should be three different lessons from the day.)

Day 2

Preparation: Teacher should examine the topics turned in and create a list for students to use in the following lesson. Teacher should have at least three topics for each group to discuss. Also, print out the list of 10 Questions or project them during class.

Step 1 — Review (2 minutes)

Ask a student to talk about the previous lesson. Again, ask students to share what they learned.

Step 2 — Small group discussion/examination (10 minutes per topic, 30 minutes total)

Put students in groups of four by counting off in class. Teacher or a student leader in class should orally provide one of the topics on a sheet. Teacher should not hand out the sheet since handwriting can identify an individual.

This should be completed three times in the group. Remind students they may be given a topic another group member provided. Students should remain respectful in discussion

Step 3 — Application (18 minutes)

The group should select one of the coverage ideas. If you don’t already have a coverage planner, teacher could use the one provided at Tim Harrower’s site. Teacher should assess the package planner sheet.

Extension

Using your student media mission statement and policy statement, evaluate whether these allows an open forum for the free exchange of ideas — and not just those that are popular.

An extension to this assignment would be for students to take one or more of these assignments and show administrators and others why they should be encouraged to report these stories or similar ones instead of having copy prior reviewed.

 

Self-censorship examination slideshow

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